Elk

The day was winding down so we drove down into the town of Banff to get something to eat and get a good map of the area. Banff is like Estes Park Colorado, it is a town that lives by the tourists of the park. Which means in the summer it is full to the point of bursting with visitors (and elk) who travel thousands of miles to see one of the three most beautiful parks in North America and spend their time wandering from tee shirt store to yogurt shop to local artisans shop to outdoor gear store to tee shirts to yogurt. It’s an endless cycle for some. Dave and I made one pass up the main drag. We got a map, played dodge the caribou, and I bought a patch from the park. We had dinner in a second floor restaurant, out on the balcony overlooking the street. We saw a real Canadian Mountie in full uniform, enjoyed the meal and being above to crowd and left town as soon as we could. We were going to be back at Lake Louise at sunrise.
We took our time looking around on the way back to the campground, and restocked the cooler at a little store in Lake Louise Village (a nice name for a small cluster of tourist shops and the necessary grocery store and gas station). The campground was a couple of miles from the lake and it was full dark by the time we rolled in. Set up the tents and sleep.
Here’s some advice for those of you, like me, who love to sleep in a tent and love to do it in the mountains (where even in July you can see your breath when you get out of your bag in the morning) and hate putting on ice cold clothes. Sleep with them. Don’t sleep in them, because then you lose a big layer a insulation when you get out and, if you got a good bag, your clothes will be damp from sweat. Not good. But, putting them down in your sleeping bag with you keeps them warm,and when you put them on there will be no heart stopping death or scream of horror sure to wake most of western Canada. The other campers will thank you. If you’re one of those that get moving about eight or so like most, you can lay there and listen to the gasping and screaming of the inexperienced and revel in your secret knowledge.
Wednesday morning we were up and gone before the sun. The day was overcast and cool, perfect light. An overcast sky gives few shadows and a more even lighting. The fantastic color of the lakes seems to glow in that half light. If you want big sweeping panoramas, not so much, but if you know (and I was learning) how to frame your subject, it is perfect.
Dave and I made the short drive to Lake Louise from the campground (we drove because we weren’t planning on going back) and parked in the large, and at that hour empty parking area. As we got out of the truck and looked around, Dave goes “Oh my God, what the hell is that?”
There is a large bulky shape lumbering across the path to the lake. I had never actually seen something lumber before, but when you see it, you know it.
“It’s a porcupine Dave.”
“It’s huge”, and with that he took off after it. Now if you’ve never seen a porcupine in the wild, Dave is right. They are the size of a medium large dog. Only in cartoons and National Geographic specials you get the impression they are about the size of a cat, they aren’t. This guy was terrified of Dave and was hauling ass across the parking lot to get away from him. Dave pursued him for about 50 feet, got a few pictures, and let him make his escape into the brush.
We then made our way up to the lake and the second of the two best pictures I have ever taken. Perfect light, perfect scene.